I thought I was pretty clear that I have nothing against reason. There
are many, many examples of God inviting us to use our reason (Isa 44:12-20,
Matt 15:3, 16:8, ...). In fact, just about everywhere He asks a question
He is inspecting our ability to reason. (He has other ways of determining
what is in our hearts, e.g. Deu 8:2).
However your assertion was that intellectual assent was `necessary to
saving faith'. The passage in Isaiah is a argument for Israel to forsake
their evil ways, which doesn't seem applicable. I think a better argument
for the necessity of intellectual assent comes out of Romans 10:14:
> How then shall they call upon Him in whom they have not believed? And
> how shall they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how shall
> they hear without a preacher?
Paul says it is necessary to receive the Gospel, and that reception comes
through our intellectual faculties. However it is not with our intellect
that we assent, for in verse 10 he says
for with the heart man believes, resulting in righteousness,
and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.
***
You asked:
> Where would you draw the line of demarcation between the "head" and the
> "heart"?
I had said:
> Christianity is foremost a matter of the heart, not of the head:
I was using the terms head and heart in the common english usage:
head: The seat of the faculty for reason: intellect or mind.
heart: The vital center of one's being, emotions, and sensibilities.
I would say that the head operates objectively, while the heart acts
subjectively.
objective: based on external material reality (observable phenomena),
as distinguished from a mental concept, idea, or belief --- i.e.
uninfluenced by emotion, surmise, or personal prejudice.
subjective: based on internal reality and intuition that is not
externally verifiable.
We must receive Christ by faith, which is subjective:
Now faith is the assurance of {things} hoped for,
the conviction of things not seen. [Heb 11:1]
Actually I agree that this distinction is a little artificial, but only
because most of our supposedly objective reasoning is based on subjective
perceptions of reality. We do reason with our heads, but it is according
to what is in our hearts. The issue is not what we observe externally,
but what we believe about those observations. Belief is a matter of
the heart (though influenced by our mind).
***
To reiterate: to say that intellectual assent is not necessary to
salvation is not the same thing as saying that reason was unimportant
for any purpose.
I am also not saying that Christians should ignore reason (aren't I
reasoning with Christians here?).
But I do suggest that we recognize that our ability to attain knowledge
of truth through reason is limited by the subjectivity of our premises.
This doesn't mean that we shouldn't reason, only that we should
not put our confidence in our ability to reason. Our confidence should
be in Christ (Phili 3:4-17).
If it is necessary that Christianity make objective sense to us, then
why are we told:
and said, "Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and become
like children, you shall not enter the kingdom of heaven. [Matt 18:3]
Reasoning in children is very subjective.
Reasoning in adults is also subjective because of the limits
of our knowledge, as the following analogy points out:
When I was a child, I used to speak as a child, think as a child,
reason as a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish
things. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I
know in part, but then I shall know fully just as I also have been
fully known. [1 Cor 13:11-12]
--Dave